Sagamore Farm building burns in fire

Historic horse farm, owned by Under Armour's Kevin Plank, is located in northern Baltimore County

July 01, 2014|By Sean Welsh, The Baltimore Sun

A fire badly damaged a recently-renovated building at Sagamore Farm in northern Baltimore County Monday night into Tuesday, the farm's management and Baltimore County fire officials said.

The fire, which occurred in the 3500 block of Belmont Avenue in Reisterstown, began around 11:28 p.m. Monday and was under control by 1:18 a.m. Tuesday, Baltimore County fire officials said in a statement.

Tom Mullikin, manager of Sagamore Farm — which is owned by Under Armour founder Kevin Plank — said in a statement the fire took place at "our newly constructed employee quarters" and caused "significant" damage.

There were no injuries to people or horses, according to both Mullikin and Baltimore County fire officials.

"In his ongoing efforts to restore the tradition and history of Sagamore Farm, Kevin Plank built a beautiful home for our dedicated farm employees," Mullikin said. "The building was designed in the farm's historic architectural style, and set in the footprint of the jockeys' quarters that were original to the property. While the property damage is unfortunate, we are thankful that no employees or horses were injured or ever in danger. We are grateful to the Baltimore County police and firefighters who responded, and we plan to rebuild as soon as possible."

Sagamore Farm, established in the 1920s, is revered as one of Maryland's legendary training grounds for thoroughbred racing. Plank invested in the property in 2007 with the intent of restoring it to its once-proud glory and making an inroads into the thoroughbred racing industry.

The county said it dispatched 29 pieces of fire equipment to the scene. The fire was one of many reported across the Baltimore region Monday night into Tuesday, including one earlier in the evening at the Salvo Auto Parts store in Dundalk.